


Kiso Uma

by crmsndragonwngs



Series: Seidou Week 2015 [4]
Category: Tokyo Ghoul
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Fluff, Horseback Riding, fluff fluff fluff, i just call him THE MAN, i never named him, kiso ponies, some unnamed guy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-06
Updated: 2015-11-06
Packaged: 2018-04-30 07:01:24
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5154641
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crmsndragonwngs/pseuds/crmsndragonwngs
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Seidou Week - Day 5<br/>Relationships—love, hate, friendship, family</p>
            </blockquote>





	Kiso Uma

**Author's Note:**

> I realize I skipped day 4 and I'm sorry, I've just been really busy. I said I was going to double up today, but I could barely even write this. I didn't even proofread it :( ugh, this week man. Anyway, I may just save day 4 for the anything goes day (even though I had something planned for that day goddammit...).
> 
> This might be a little ooc for Akira (and possibly for Seidou), but it's fluff so I don't feel too bad about that lol :P

Seidou jumps when Amon catches his arm as he walks down the hall.

“I-I’m sorry, Amon-san, I got caught in traffic, and I—” He starts, staring at the taller man with wide eyes as Amon’s hand tightens around his arm.

“Be nice. You know what today is.” He says firmly, his face severe, then lets Seidou go and continues on to the break room without another word.

“What?” Seidou says blankly, more to himself than to Amon.

But when he walks into the squad room and sees Akira’s face, he remembers.

Today is the one year anniversary of her father’s death.

She sits stiffly at her desk, staring at her computer screen with a blank expression on her face. Her hands rest unmoving in her lap, her ankles are crossed delicately beneath the chair, and her eyes are focused on a point millions of miles away. She looks like a statue, still and pale and cold like marble.

“Mado-san?” Seidou calls quietly, and she starts, then whips around with a stern look on her face. But her eyes are like glass, empty of all fire or sharpness that might usually accompany such a look. 

“What do you want?” She snaps. Seidou wrings his hands.

“How are you feeling?” He asks, because he doesn’t know what else to say, and watches as her eyes widen. She takes a deep breath, then bites her lip as though holding back what she’d really like to say, then sighs and turns back around.

“Fine.” Seidou flinches.

“Would it…would it help if you talked about it?” He sits hesitantly next to her, but she ignores him and moves her hands from her lap to rest them on her keyboard. She does not begin typing. Seidou takes it as a good sign. “When my grandma died last year, it helped to talk to my friends—”

“I don’t have any friends.” She cuts in abruptly. He stares.

“Akira, I—”

“Just leave me alone, Takizawa.” So he does.

\---

“Where are you going?” Seidou asks, jogging to catch up to her in the CCG lobby. 

“Home.” Akira replies, looking at him calmly. Her eyes are still glassy and distant.

“Nah.” He huffs, crossing his arms over his chest.

“‘Nah?’” She echoes. “Takizawa, if you’re asking me to go somewhere with you, then the answer is no. I’ve already—”

“Yeah yeah, you’ve already eaten lunch and won’t eat again until later, I’m not asking you to go eat with me.”

“Then what are you asking?” She eyes him suspiciously. “And what are you doing leaving work anyway?”

“I asked if I could take the rest of the day off to try and cheer you up.”

“And Houji bought that?”

“Houji-san thought it was a great idea and encouraged it.”

She huffs, then turns and walks toward the door.

“Come on then.” 

“Nope.” He catches up to her again and grabs her wrist. “We’re not going to your apartment.”

“Then where are we going?” She asks as she tries to tug her arm away from him. He doesn’t let her. Instead he grins at her and begins dragging her toward his car.

“You’ll see.”

\---

“Hey.” He calls softly, shaking her shoulder. At first, she just squeezes her eyes shut tighter, but he persists and finally she swats at him.

“What?” She snaps sleepily, but he only points to the large, decidedly fuzzy animal grazing just beyond the passenger-side window.

She stares for a long time, motionless as though afraid it will attack her if she moves.

“Akira.” He says through a snort, and when she turns to look at him, tears are shining in her eyes. Oh shit. “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you upset. We can leave if you want, this was a stupid idea.” He looks away, flushing from jaw to hairline. 

But she has stepped out of the car, and hasn’t heard a single word. 

He gets out after her, and follows her to the… _very_ large animal. He rests his hands on the fence, grateful it is there, and watches her as she calls to it.

“How did…” She starts, but her voice catches in her throat. “Seidou, how did you know I like horses?” He shrugs.

“Doesn’t every girl like horses at some point in their lives?” She stares at him, searching his face, then bursts out laughing.

“Where are we?” She asks, turning her attention back to the horse.

“Kiso Ranch, miss.” A man answers, making them both jump. “In the foothills of Mt. Fuji. You must be Takizawa-san.”

“Ah, yes, hello.” Seidou replies with a bow. 

“Alright then, we should get going. The ponies are already saddled. We’ve got helmets and boots for you to use as well, if you wish. Have either of you ridden a horse before?”

“Once, at a friend’s birthday party when I was little.” Akira says, still gazing at the horse on the other side of the fence.

“Uh, no.” Seidou mumbles, then scratches the back of his head. “Honestly, I’ve never even been this close to an animal this big before. I mean, other than in zoos.” The man laughs.

“Don’t worry too much. These ponies have gone down the trails hundreds of times. We even put little children on them. I assure you, you are perfectly safe.”

The man leads them to a little fenced in area where three ponies are saddled and sleepily waiting. The dirt is deep and fluffy, and Seidou winces as he sinks to his ankles and dirt fills his shoes. Next to the ponies is a wooden platform that sits roughly even with the…feet-things on the sides of the saddles, and when the man moves to stand next to the lead pony’s head and motions toward the platform, Seidou panics.

“A-are you sure these are…ponies?” He asks, watching warily as Akira climbs into the saddle. She meets his anxious gaze and smiles, then takes the reins delicately in her hands.

“Yes sir, they’re certainly too small to be horses!” The man says with a grin, before explaining how to steer to Akira. 

Then it is Seidou’s turn to board.

And suddenly this was a very bad idea.

He climbs onto the platform and stares at the pony’s ears as he edges up to it. If this is too small to be a horse, then how big is a fucking horse?

“Don’t be nervous.” The man says kindly. “They can feel it, you know. Just take a deep breath, shake the tension out of your shoulders, and swing on up.”

“You make it sound so easy.” Seidou grumbles, but does as he asks and kind of…falls into the saddle. The pony staggers a bit, then shakes its head and snorts. 

“Squeeze your legs and kiss to go, sit back and say ‘whoa’ to stop. I’ll handle the rest.” The man says, then steps back, keeping one hand on the reins. “Go ahead and try it.”

So Seidou squeezes and kisses, and the pony moves away from the platform smoothly. He sways with each of the animal’s steps, and for fear of toppling over the side, he leans as far back as he can and shouts WHOA.

The man and Akira both laugh.

“Yeah, you’ll be fine. Let me get my pony, and then we’ll leave.” The man says, still laughing, and walks off. 

“Are you really scared?” Akira asks, riding up as though she’s been doing this all her life. Seidou feels his face heat.

“Shut up, Mado.” 

\---

The trail is…peaceful. They don’t talk much, and when they do it is about the history of the place, the pony breed, and the animals that are native to the area, but mostly they are silent.

And so is the forest.

Deep in the woods like this, on the back of a very big animal (that is surprisingly serene), it is easy to forget about the bustling city just beyond the tree line. It’s easy to forget about ghouls and humans and blood and death. It’s easy to forget about impending missions that could take either one of their lives so quickly. Instead, there is only the forest, the sky, and the gentle breaths of ponies content with their lives and their jobs.

How lucky they are.

“We’re going to stop up here for a moment and water the ponies.” The man says after a long moment has passed in complete silence. “It won’t take long, but I don’t think you’ll mind much.” Seidou snorts. He won’t mind at all, his ass is sore and his lower back hurts.

“Seidou…look.” Akira whispers when they stop.

“What?” He asks, looking up at her. She points ahead and he follows her gaze.

Through the trees sits Mt Fuji, tall and proud in the dusky mist. A plane flies overhead, reminding them with a quiet buzz that civilization is just a few miles away, but when it disappears behind the trees, they forget it almost immediately.

Then Seidou’s pony is moving and he nearly jumps out of his skin. But when he looks down, it is only the man, poking the animal’s side. He looks up and grins.

“So you can get a better look.” He whispers, then goes back to filling the water buckets.

“It’s beautiful.” Akira breathes, and when Seidou looks at her he is surprised to see how close the pony had gotten to her. So close that their knees brush when he shifts in his saddle. “Thank you for taking me here, Seidou.” She says after a moment, scrubbing her face with the back of her hand. 

And before he can stop and think about what he is doing, he leans over and kisses her cheek. It is light and quick, and he nearly falls off the damn horse trying to reach her, but when her eyes widen and her cheeks tinge with pink, he thinks it was worth it.

“So are you glad Houji-san ‘bought my excuse’ to leave work early?” He asks with a grin, then flinches when Akira’s brow knits and her eyes harden into a glare.

“Don’t push it, Takizawa.” She snaps coolly, but there is a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so I'm going to do something a little different here. I'm going to post my notes. See, I'm a horse person, so if there are horses involved I am all over that shit. And when I saw the relationship prompt, I decided to combine my two greatest loves: horses and seiaki. Also, kissing on horseback. Is it impractical? Yes. Is it romantic af? HELL yes. And cheek kisses? Omg, sign me up.
> 
> Anyway, these are my notes for this fic. It's a combination of general horse facts (which are for my non-horsey followers), my own observations, and geography/history of pony breeds in Japan. And by geography, I mean place, setting, and how long it takes to get there from Tokyo. I'm going to go ahead and say I don't know much about the geographical layout of Japan, as I have never been there, so if my info is wrong I blame Google maps. The pony stuff should be correct though :) Also, yes, that is the website for the actual stable. It's pretty fucking neat and I want to go, so if someone would take me that would be great.
> 
> Oh! And if you have any questions about horses (in general or specifically) that my notes don't cover, please feel free to ask!! I LOVE talking about horses and teaching people how they work and why, so if I can answer the question I will, no matter how silly it might seem (and if I can't, I'll ask my friend, who is an equine science major, or my trainer and get back to you!). There are no stupid questions when it comes to horses!!
> 
> \---
> 
> Ponies and horses differ only in breed and conformation. Both are _Equus Caballus_ , but they vary greatly in size and proportion. The standard rule is this: any horse that is 14.2 hands high at the withers (about 56.8 inches, or 144.272 centimeters) or over is a HORSE. Any horse that is 14.1hh or under is a PONY. This is usually regardless of breed unless the breed registry states differently. For example, my Quarter Horse bred American Paint Horse gelding is 14.2hh, so he is both a horse according to his registry and technically a horse, but a mare that one of my friends owns is only 14hh. She is a registered American Quarter Horse (so basically the same as my gelding, just without spots), so her registry dictates that she is a horse, but if we look at her height she is a pony. The same goes for the ever lovable Norwegian Fjord Horses. Their breed registry dictates that they are all horses, but the average height is 14.1hh, so they are technically ponies! And on the other end of the spectrum, the athletic Connemara Pony (specifically the North American stock) can reach 15hh. So even though its registry says it is a pony, they are technically horses! Weird, huh? 
> 
> Aside from height, there are many factors that make a pony a pony and a horse a horse. If you look at pictures of, say, a Welsh Pony and compare it to a Thoroughbred, you are going to see very obvious structural differences between the two. Look specifically at the head, topline, and legs; that's where you'll see the biggest differences!
> 
> Kiso horses (Japanese: 木曽馬, kiso uma): avg 13hh; most commonly bay, chestnut, or “buckskin dun” (probably bay dun, dunskins are usually lighter and more yellow than these dun ponies), but can be of any color; the breed itself is endangered, and there were estimates of only 150 animals according to a 2013 census.
> 
> Koyodai Kiso Horse Ranch Website: http://www.geocities.jp/kouyoudaikisoumabokujou/index.html 
> 
> From Tokyo to Narusawa: 1h 28m by car, 2h 46m mass transit
> 
> Looks like staff members hand lead trail riders, but you can control your own horse if you wish. The horses are well broke and docile.
> 
> Helmets, boots, whips, etc are provided by the ranch. Riders mount using mounting block. Looks like western trail saddles are used, with breastcollars and backgirths. They seem to be shod.
> 
> Looks like halters are left on under bridles, lead lines wrapped around the tourist’s saddle horn. Probably there in case the rider is nervous and wants a staff member to lead them. Staff lead on foot.
> 
> The ponies are thick-boned as fuck. They look like tiny draft horses. They’re adorable as all hell. Short, but have big feet and legs, as well as some light feathering on fetlocks. 
> 
> They’re calm too. Watched a video where the handler allowed too much lead (he was letting him find a spot to roll) and the pony stepped on it. He stopped, lifted his foot, and waited for the handler to take care of him. Good fucking pony. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58Te65C74eA 
> 
> These ponies are actually fucking tiny in height, Seidou's just never been around an animal much bigger than a large dog before, so it's sort of a shock. But to people who know horses know that these cuties are itty bitty. They make my horse look like a giant and he's a tiny cow horse lol (even though he's built like a monster, seriously, he's a goddamn body builder, he's just short...Quarter Horses, man :P).


End file.
